Protests mount over torture and arrest of a young political force in Uganda

Protests have erupted throughout Uganda after parliamentarian Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu was charged at a military court following his brutal arrest and torture in the town of Arua in northwest Uganda.

The singer-turned-politician known as “Bobi Wine” who represents the Kyadondo East district has been a fierce critic of President Yoweri Museveni and was in the Arua district campaigning for independent candidate Kassiano Wadri.

Fondly known as “the Ghetto President,” Wine has galvanized young voters to engage in critical by-elections since 2016, when Museveni won yet another term to extend his 32-year-old rule.

In Arua, on August 13, Bobi Wine’s personal driver Yasin Kawuma was shot and killed in his car. Images of Kawuma’s blood-soaked, lifeless body still strapped in his parked car have shaken the country. Chaos subsequently ensued in the final campaign rallies during which the Ugandan government claims Wadri’s supporters stoned a presidential convoy.

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Joel Cholo Brooks is a Liberian journalist who previously worked for several international news outlets including the BBC African Service. He is the CEO of the Global News Network which publishes two local weeklies, The Star and The GNN-Liberia Newspapers. He is a member of the Press Union Of Liberia (PUL) since 1986, and several other international organizations of journalists, and is currently contributing to the South Africa Broadcasting Corporation as Liberia Correspondent.